On June 4, Kyrie Irving, the basketball star of the Dallas Mavericks, presented a gift to his father, Drederick Irving, with an extraordinary Father’s Day present. As per Shams Charania of The Athletic, Drederick has recently inked a unique shoe agreement with ANTA Sports, a significant accomplishment right before the Mavericks take on the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals on June 6.
ANTA Sports Partnership
ANTA Sports, a China-based multinational company located in Jinjiang, is known as the world’s third-largest producer of sporting goods, following Nike and Adidas. The company backs a range of athletes worldwide, such as Manny Pacquiao, Gordon Hayward, and Klay Thompson. In the year 2024, Kyrie Irving and ANTA Sports introduced their initial joint shoe, the ANTA KAI 1.
Kyrie holds the title of chief creative officer at ANTA Sports in addition to being sponsored by them, giving him substantial control over collaborations, such as the groundbreaking agreement he arranged for his father.
A Historic Shoe Deal
The agreement represents the initial occasion on which a professional athlete has endorsed his father for a signature shoe contract. Drederick Irving, a previous basketball player at Boston University and later a professional player in Australia, still adds to the Irving family’s basketball tradition.
Transition from Nike to ANTA
Before 2023, Kyrie was linked with Nike before transitioning to ANTA Sports. Nevertheless, his partnership with Nike came to an end in 2022 when he shared a link on social media promoting a book and movie with anti-Semitic material. As a result of this, Nike decided to temporarily end their collaboration and halt the launch of the Kyrie 8 shoe.
Nike chose to temporarily halt its collaboration with Irving and announced that they would not launch the Kyrie 8 shoe. Nonetheless, the company eventually determined that the six-time NBA All-Star had overstepped boundaries.
Kyrie crossed the line. “It’s pretty straightforward,” said Phil Knight, co-founder of Nike, in an interview with CNBC on November 10, 2022. “We cannot tolerate the statements he made, which is why we decided to end the relationship.” I was okay with that.
Fan Reactions and Future Plans
Fans responded favorably to the gift announcement of Kyrie Irving and Drederick’s sneaker agreement. People filled social media with positive remarks, rejoicing over the significant and individual significance of the deal.
Signing your father as a sponsored athlete is truly wonderful. One fan pointed out that this was a great move by ANTA, something that Nike would never have done.
Shams Charania reports that Drederick’s new shoe will be available at Foot Locker stores starting in September. This special collaboration not only enhances the Irving family heritage. But also showcases the changing athlete endorsement and brand partnership scene.
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